Laurel Hill Cemetery

One of America's first "rural" cemeteries, founded in 1836 as a scenic, landscaped burial ground. With approximately 77,000 souls resting on its 78 acres, this National Historic Landmark is a favorite among paranormal investigators as well as joggers, artists, and photographers.

Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia is one of the oldest cemeteries in the United States and a favorite among paranormal investigators. Spanning 100 acres, this rural cemetery features resplendent Victorian funerary monuments including small palaces, art nouveau sarcophagi, and pre-Raphaelite stained glass. With approximately 77,000 souls resting on the grounds—including statesmen, Civil War veterans from both armies, and local celebrities—it seems like a prime haunting location.

The cemetery was established in 1836 as one of America's first "garden cemeteries," designed to be both a burial ground and a public park. It became one of the first true arboretums and served as a model for municipal parks across the nation. Many distinguished Civil War-era personalities are buried here, and the cemetery hosts regular ghost hunts and paranormal investigations.

One likely candidate for Laurel Hill's haunting is Maurice Fagan. After serving honorably in the Civil War and being recognized twice for gallantry, Fagan was plagued by terrible pain in his head. Doctors diagnosed him with vague illnesses like rheumatism or neuralgia—today, some wonder if he suffered from migraines or perhaps PTSD from the horrors he witnessed in combat. The pain tormented him for the rest of his life, and if ghosts prefer to linger where they suffered most, Fagan would be a strong candidate.

One of the cemetery's darker stories involves Helena Schaaff Saunders, whose grave is marked by a statue of a woman holding two infants looking out over the Schuylkill River. Legend claims she and her children died in a boating accident, but the truth is more tragic: she gave birth to a stillborn child, then died in labor with her second child, who also died.

Historian John Francis Marion began the popular tradition of nighttime Halloween tours here. Today, thousands of visitors attend public programs at Laurel Hill, including ghost hunts. The cemetery also features the fictional grave of Rocky Balboa's wife Adrian. Many Philadelphians who are short on gardening space participate in programs to tend individual plots using historically accurate Victorian-era plants.